“To know the women who came before us is to know ourselves. It is to know the blood memory that runs through our veins. It is to know that the unlived dreams of our ancestors are our honor and our duty to live out, right now. Because right now, as women and as girls, when it comes to the work of the women before us, we may not be able to pay it back, but we can certainly pay it forward.” -Cleo Wade
For over 30 years Grade 4 Hamlin students have taken the stage in front of their peers and parents, giving voice to inspiring women who came before them. This project was started by a beloved Hamlin teacher Jan Micha, and is now named after her.
For this project students select a woman from history, do extensive research from multiple sources, then embody that person, presenting in character with substance, poise and eloquence. When Hamlin alumnae come back to visit they often cite their Women in History presentation as an enduring hallmark of their education.
Our students will present to their parents tomorrow tonight at the Century Club from 6-9 p.m.. This afternoon they will have the opportunity to partake in “Meeting of the Minds.” At this occasion they will speak as their influential women, discussing various topics with their peers, who are also in character. While sharing profound discourse, students enjoy delicious treats and sip drinks.
This year girls are representing the following women:
- Deborah Sampson (1760)
- Maria Mitchell (1818)
- Susan B. Anthony (1820)
- Harriet Tubman (1820)
- Louisa May Alcott (1832)
- Maria A’Becket (1839)
- Arabella Mansfield (1846)
- Nettie Stevens (1861)
- Nellie Bly (1864)
- Julia Morgan (1872)
- Eleanor Roosevelt (1884)
- Claire McCardell (1905)
- Grace Hopper (1906)
- Virginia Hall (1906)
- Rachel Carson (1907)
- Virginia Apgar (1909)
- Lucille Ball (1911)
- Katherine Graham (1917)
- Gretchen Fraser (1919)
- Mary Jackson (1921)
- Aiko Herzig Yoshinaga (1925)
- Maria Tallchief (1925)
- Patsy Mink (1927)
- Maya Angelou (1928)
- Muriel Siebert (1928)
- Audrey Hepburn (1929)
- Dian Fossey (1932)
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg (1933)
- Gloria Steinem (1934)-Visited Hamlin
- Sylvia Earle (1935)-Visited Hamlin
- Sylvia Mendez (1936)
- Madeleine Albright (1937)
- Wilma Rudolph (1940)
- Billie Jean King (1943)
- Meryl Streep (1949)
- Ruby Bridges (1954)-Visited Hamlin
- Madonna Ciccone (1958)
- Oprah Winfrey (1958)
- Maya Lin (1959)
- Florence Joyner (1959)
- Michelle Obama (1964)
- Danai Gurira (1978)
- Abby Wambach (1980)
- Danica Patrick (1982)
- Misty Copeland (1982)
- Rebecca Sugar (1987)